Ci Vedremo in Primavera
by DeutscherStolz
Summary: Dedicated to Autumn.
1. Chapter 1

Summer days were supposed to pass with ease. Early in the morning, the smell of freshly baked bread would waft through the air accompanied by a cool breeze to carry it down pathways and throughout the surroundings of the early opening marketplaces. People would talk to each other and amongst themselves, exchanging friendly greetings which ranged from simple words to kisses and so on. Everyone was rather kind to each other, often offering deals to family members or close friends, sometimes even strangers who seemed a little short on money that day. Nevertheless, whatever the case, twelve year old Autumn was always amongst the crowd. Not usually to buy things, though she did run errands there every once in a while, but mainly just to see the world in action. Besides, with being loved by the whole town, her sudden appearance and bright smile never once bothered a single soul. She was admired there, not only because of her beautiful, unique skin tone that no one else had, but because of her personality that could light up a room, no matter how tense the moments before had been. In all, she was radiant and appreciated. Each morning, she'd run down the cobblestone pathway with her two best friends, Maddison and Hannah, and would hear her mother's cautious warning from behind, telling her not to go too far away from the house, only for her to respond with a dismissive wave, having complete faith in herself to be safe. After all, in this wonderful, delightful town, nothing could happen to hurt her. Nothing could possibly ruin the amazing life that she lived.

That was until war struck years later.

.

1939

_Naples, Italy_

Summer days no longer started with any chirping birds or amazing smells. There were no voices or open doors and rarely could a nice person be found. Maddison and Hannah spent their time separately without each other, finding the world to be a dangerous and disgusting place now since people were doing such horrible things. With the German and Italian military now occupying their once so peaceful town, going outside seemed more like a hassle or a chore than a likely decision. Even without the company of her friends, Autumn still left the house at times, though she often found herself missing the harmonious happiness that everyone used to have.

As she quietly walked down the worn street alone, her scuffed boots clipping small stones and pebbles, she hummed a happy tune to herself and brushed her short, ebony hair away from her auburn eyes, dark enough for anything to reflect in them, even in the fog of the day. She glanced upwards at the sun, shielded by incoming clouds which threatened to start a downpour, though she didn't particularly mind. '_It will be a good day,'_ she told herself in her mind, shoving her hands into the pockets of her purple cardigan, only to feel one of her fingers tear through a hole at the bottom. Autumn cursed under her breath and released a deep sigh, still trying to keep a positive attitude when the next incident came.

Yelling and screaming was heard from behind her back, causing her to whirl around and see a woman pushing a German soldier out of her shop. That, of course, was a horrible decision since those from _Bundesrepublik Deutschland _were more tense and strict than any other people on the planet. Immediately as she saw the man push back and hit the woman, Autumn's instincts came into action and she began running towards them to help. Before she even made it halfway, though, an Italian man rushed over from out of what seemed like nowhere and stopped the next hit, holding up both of his arms, showing he meant no harm. "Smettere, per favore!" he exclaimed ever so quietly, waving around a white flag in his right hand. "Uh. . spreche Sie Italienische? Si." He continued on, speaking rather quickly and frantically in his native language, explaining the situation, whatever it truly was, and trying to make him calm down. The German officer only yelled an angry reply, spit on the ground, and left, pushing past the girl who had been watching from afar. As she watched the Italian help the woman back inside, she curiously drifted over towards the situation, catching the eye of the strange boy that has rushed in from who-knows-where. When he saw her, a small smile began spreading across his face, yet he was forced to look away when the older woman began speaking to him again. Autumn felt a small leap within her heart and she felt the need to follow him inside, only to be drawn back by the sound of her mother's voice in the distance. With a roll of her eyes and a hesitant turn, she headed back towards her house on the hill, only able to think of the nice stranger and the way he had looked at her.

.

Autumn stepped inside her house through the front door, a small smile lighting her face as she caught sight of her mother cooking at the stove, hanging her cardigan on a hook by the door. "Sorry I took so long. I was out and-" She was cut off rather abruptly by her mom shushing her and pointing at the radio which she had only just then noticed was on. As always, it was turned onto some political station she didn't care about which only spoke of death, war, victory, more death, and so on. It was honestly too depressing for her to enjoy. "Do we really have to listen to this?" She asked, sitting down in a chair by the device, wanting more than ever to change the station.

"Of course we do. Ever since your father was drafted, this is our only way of knowing about his whereabouts. We could listen to that Englishman, Haw-Haw, but I can't really understand his language," she said, shooting a glance back to her daughter who let out a quiet groan, though immediately lightened up a bit when she saw her mother begin to serve pasta into bowls. "Ah, come on. I made your favorite." Autumn shot up from her chair and slowly took the bowl from her mom's hand, hugging her from the side and laughing slightly.

"Thank you, mother." With that, she was temporarily removed from her previously thoughtful state of mind and went on eating, though she had never truly gotten the image of that soldier out of her mind and the weird way she felt about him so suddenly that she couldn't understand.

.

By the time the next morning came, Autumn somehow found herself wandering involuntarily around the town, feeling as if she were being pulled out there by something. Well, some_one_, really. Strangely as she passed the bakery where the incident had occurred the day before, she was disappointed to see no one standing there. She couldn't truly imagine why as she had only seen him once, but yet she still found herself standing there in the walkway alone, her eyes locked on the empty doorway.

For many days, life passed like this, her hopes up for God-knows-what reason only to have them fall to the ground in pieces when she couldn't find who or what she was looking for. It was on one of those days, with her back turned to the empty grass lots on the right of the path and with her eyes wandering around the window that she heard that all too familiar voice.

"Ciao~"

Autumn turned rather swiftly, a light gasp escaping her as she heard the words, this new Italian man startling her with his friendly voice. "O-Oh, you scared me."

"Sorry, miss. I saw you standing here for a while and was wondering if you were alright."

She placed a hand over her chest and let a relieved sigh out, glad it wasn't that officer from the other day. "Yes, I'm fine. I just- You're that man that saved that woman the other day," she said in astonishment, beginning to smile a little.

"Yes, and you're that girl that was watching me," he smiled flirtatiously, having to look up slightly at the tall girl, adjusting his tan colored cap that rested on his head oddly. It looked as if it could fall off, yet stayed on as if it were glued. Extending his hand, he winked and his eye seemed to sparkle, though it may have just been her imagination. "I'm Feliciano Vargas. Who are you, beautiful?"

Yes. He was definitely flirting. "My name is Autumn," she said as she took his hand, though instead of him shaking it, he lifted it to his lips and pressed a kiss to the top of it, grinning down all the while. This caused a blush to spread across her cheeks, though she tried to conceal it.

"Ah, Autumn. My favorite season, right next to spring. That's a very lovely name to match your very lovely self. Tell me, Miss Autumn, would you like to go to dinner sometime?"

There was a long, awkward silence as she stared, unsure of this man's overwhelming charmingness. "I _just_ met you. I don't even know you."

"You're right! Then we should get to know each other better. Tomorrow at eight?"

Again, there was a pause. All that could be heard was the calm breeze and Autumn awkwardly shifting her feet. She turned to glance at her house behind her, wondering what her mother would think of this. With a happy sigh, she whirled back around to face Feliciano, gripping the side of her arm nervously. "I'll be here. Eight."

"Really?" He seemed more shocked than he should have for looking so confident earlier.

"Yes, but I have to go for now," she began as she turned, smiling and waving at him while walking back home. "Ciao, Feliciano!"

He stood in the pathway and laughed triumphantly under his breath, beginning to walk back the way he came from. "Ciao. . Autumn."

She arrived home and repeated what she had done days before, placing her cardigan on the hook by the door and sitting down in a chair, her mother cooking again. "Mom, I uh. . today I met a boy."

She stopped what she was doing and curiously turned to face her daughter, wiping her hands together to get water off of them. "A boy?"

The girl couldn't help but feel somewhat giddy about this, letting out a small giggle through her lips as she thought of the flustered young man she saw earlier that day. "Yes. He asked me if I could go to dinner with him tomorrow and-"

She was cut off by a loud gasp from her mother's side who seemed more than a little bit pleased for Autumn to have met someone. "That's wonderful! Is he cute? Is he smart? What does he talk about?"

"Mother, he's- I. . I don't know much about him other than he's kind enough to help an old lady and is a soldier."

"Ah. Good enough. When's the dinner?"

"Tomorrow. Eight p.m. sharp!" She said, growing more and more excited as they spoke, though she couldn't tell why. After all, they had just met.

"Oh, honey, we have so much to do before then! You need to pick out an outfit and choose your hair and shoes and. . oh, this will be fun."

For the rest of the night, Autumn and her mother spent their time picking and choosing different clothing, trying to decide what was too dressy and what was too casual. Eventually, they settled on a respectable yet short dress, the bottom half being black and the top a medium blue, a white strap separating the two near the waist line. It was not formal or casual, but perfect and she loved it.

All she had to do next was force herself to sleep and push herself through the slow, painful hours of the next day until she'd see the sweet and flirtatious Italian soldier that she couldn't get off of her mind.


	2. Chapter 2

*** Feliciano ***

_The same night_

Moonlight streamed into the restaurant titled _Cielo di Cristallo_ through an open window, the only two people there being Feliciano and his brother, Lovino. Only North Italy had been there to drink, though. "Another, please," he said to his sibling with a bright smile like always, tossing his hat back and forth between his hands.

"No. You've already had enough, dammit. I'm fucking tired and I want to go home already," Lovino snapped as he cleaned a glass, rolling his eyes at his brother and turning around to place it on the shelf, only to have it crash down to the floor. He had never been good at cleaning anything.

"Ah, come on, Romano. Just one more? I'll clean up the glass for you."

"No. Stop smiling like that, you're annoying me."

He giggled quietly to himself and turned his head to watch a streetlight flicker and burn out for the fourth time this week, the cheap lightbulbs unable to keep much power going.

"Hey, Feliciano, aren't you late for a meeting or something?"

"Was that tonight?"

"Yes, dumbass, it was tonight. You better get your ass over there or your boss will be pissed."

Feliciano sighed and traced a circle over and over again on the counter in front of him, a slight frown on his face. "Aw. . Mr. Mussolini is always angry with me. It's no fair."

"Life isn't fair. That's why I sat out of this war. I'd rather not fight for stupid bastards that are blindly following orders."

"But. . Lovi, didn't you sign up for the army and they didn't accept you?"

"Shut up! And get out of my bar!" He shouted as he threw a towel at his brother, causing him to scramble up and burst through the exit, apologizing all the way through on the way out.

When he arrived at the small, grey building his boss had assigned to be their meeting spot, Feliciano sprinted inside, running down a long hallway until he finally found the room. He knocked four times before entering, gripping onto his hat tightly when he saw Benito Mussolino at his desk, tapping his fingers loudly. There was an uncomfortable silence that wouldn't pass, his heart thumping and sounding into his ears, though he attempted to appear bold. "Buonasera," he murmured, stepping in closer.

"Buonasera," came the low reply, his eyes and expression wishing much less than a good evening.

"Sorry I'm late, I had to-"

"Drink with your brother? Yes, I'm aware. This has to be the sixth time, correct?"

He felt a wave of fear overcome him, suddenly throwing him into a fast-talking panic attack. "Correct, but you see, I hadn't seen Lovino in a long time so I wanted to and when I got there I really just wanted to have fun, but he kept yelling at me so I was persisting and trying to get him to be nicer and cheer up, but he wouldn't listen and we kept on talking and talking but he still wouldn't be nice, so I asked-"

"I don't care!" The man'a voice rang out and made Feliciano whimper slightly, feeling tears prick the corners of his eyes. "Don't cry again. Look, I understand you're a nation which means you're freer than the general army. You're in charge of them. That's the situation with me, though. I'm freer than you and I'm in charge of you."

"Yes, sir."

He sighed and rubbed his forehead, just hoping to get along with this. "Good. We're getting in more German assistance throughout the town which means there will be air raids. American ones, that is, probably Canadian too."

"Ooh~ Will I see my friends then? I hope they're all safe. You know, the last time I saw them, Alfred was-"

"They're not your friends, Italy! Listen, all I need you to do is stay at base tomorrow and the day after to handle the shipment supplies the Krauts send in, okay? You also need to map out your next route to the base in Vienna."

The Italian nodded and gave a salute, only to remember about his date with Autumn the next day, becoming frantic all over again. "W-Wait, but sir! I have a date tomorrow! I can't just not show up. That would be so mean. . "

"How many times do I have to tell you, Vargas? You can't. love. humans," he said sternly, leaning back in his chair. "Hell, you can't even love other nations. Remember what happened with that little boy all those years ago? The Holy Roman Empire? You don't want a repeat of that and I guarantee you, it's more likely now than ever."

Feeling tears come to him once more, he saluted again respectfully, followed by a monotone "Yes, sir," and quickly left the room, only to begin crying immediately; both out of fear and sorrowful nostalgia.

*** Autumn ***

She woke the next morning at eight with a smile on her face, hugging her sheets close to her chest as she stared at the ceiling, finally letting it sink in that she'd be going on a date that night with a boy. A really cute boy. Autumn jumped out of bed and looked out the window, seeing the sun finally come out of hiding after days of it sitting behind clouds and fog. Really, the day was perfect. She ran into the kitchen and saw her mother sitting at the table, a record playing _Ci Vedremo in Primavera_ quietly and a newspaper in hand. Autumn grabbed an apple from the bowl on their table and hugged her mother from the side, still wearing that smile before walking swiftly to the door and taking a bite. "I'm going into the garden for a little while."

Her mother nodded and looked over at her curiously, not remembering the last time she had seen her so happy. "Alright. Be safe!" But before she could finish, the door had shut and Autmn was already on her way.

She sat down on the grass in front of a flowerbed, slowly laying her back down and staring up at the blue sky, eating her apple and thinking. She thought of her brother and father and the possibilities of his current location. She thought of the war and what was to become of her and her country. But most of all, she thought of Feliciano. Feliciano the soldier that had taken the time out of his day to spend it with her, even though she knew he had to work. Feliciano with that strange curl that wouldn't go down no matter how much he moved. Feliciano with the light brown eyes that seemed to melt her with one glance. Autumn didn't believe in love at first sight, but she could tell something was going to happen with them. She could feel it.

The day passed much quicker than she had expected seeing as she had ended up falling asleep in the garden halfway through. It was soft and it was a nice day outside, so why not? She awoke to her mother shaking her shoulders with a smile on her face, trying to get her to wake up. "Come one! Don't you have a date to go to? It's almost eight! You're lucky the tree shaded you, otherwise you would have gotten burnt."

Autumn shot up and laughed at her forgetfulness, rising to her feet and brushing some leaves from her pajamas. "Ah, whoops. I guess I just didn't sleep very well."

"I can see that. Now get inside and get changed."

She nodded and ran up the steps, darted through the open front door and into her room, her eyes immediately catching that beautiful dress that rested on a chair in the corner. With a quiet sigh, she lifted it and began to change, all the while daydreaming about what the night would be like; whether or not it would be romantic or just a casual get together. Either way, she knew she'd enjoy it what with that crazy Italian staring at her the way he did. When she was done, the girl hesitantly turned around to face the mirror on the wall, a bit stunned about what some sun and fancier clothing could do to her. Maybe she'd dress like that more often.

A quiet gasp was heard from the side of the bedroom, her mother leaning her head against the doorframe as she gawked, placing a hand over her heart and laughing quietly under her breath. "You look beautiful, sweetheart." It was somewhat silent in the room for a moment as they both thought, Autumn rubbing the back of her neck, feeling honestly very surprised about how good it looked. "Come on. Go. I bet he's waiting."

She gave her mother a tight hug and a kiss before stepping out into the dark night, filled with a feeling of overwhelming self-confidence and independence like never before. It was odd what a boy that she had known for only over a day could do to her, but she felt as if this was going to go somewhere. She couldn't tell how, but she just knew it. The streets were quiet and empty, not a person in sight and not a noise being made, the only movement visible being the light shutting off in a shop beside her. This was the time where all stores would close and the restaurants would open; where drunken sailors, pilots, or soldiers would sing random songs together and remember nothing of it the next day. Really, this was supposed to be the crazier time of night and Autumn was looking forward to experiencing it more than anyone. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, she arrived at the bakery, her heart pounding inside her chest as she waited, beginning to get a bit nervous. This was her first date, after all. Seeing a bench by the bakery wall, she decided to wait there for Feliciano to arrive, hoping he'd get there soon. She was becoming more antsy by the minutes that passed. More passed than what should have.

Minutes turned into half hours. Half hours turned into hours and so on and it was by the third hour that Autumn had totally given up. He had turned her down, or at least, that was what she thought. Standing up and trying to keep a calm composure, she wiped the tears that threatened to fall from her eyes away, not wanting to completely lose her collected demeanor. That was so hard to do, however, when her hopes had gotten up only to come crashing to the ground. She lightly gripped her elbows and held her arms close to her body, letting one tear slip as she began walking quicker, no longer wanting to be outside where people could see her. Of course, that was when she heard. .

"Ciao." Again, he appeared out of nowhere behind her, reaching out to touch her shoulder, only for her to jump back a few steps and almost cry out.

"Feliciano, what- You-" She sighed and wiped her eyes again, trying to conceal the fact that she had been crying. "You're late."

"I know. I'm sorry, I got caught up at work, and. . well, I couldn't make it."

"That's fine. You're a soldier, I shouldn't have expected you to have time for me anyways."

"Autumn, wait," he said following a small sigh, grabbing onto her wrist. She slowly turned around, about to reply when suddenly she felt his lips press against hers. It was abrupt, unexpected, and spontaneous. She stared with wide eyes, only to feel herself slowly kiss back before the embrace was broken. "Is it too late to take you out?"

She was utterly shocked, stuttering a little before she continued on. "I-Its late, but. . I don't think my mother would mind."

Feliciano grinned as his hand slid from gripping her wrist to her hand, squeezing it lightly and beginning to pull her further down the road, though her head was still spinning and she couldn't feel her legs. It was the start of a very interesting night.


	3. Chapter 3

When they arrived at the restaurant, Autumn had to blink back her shock and do a double take when she noticed how incredibly fancy this place was. There was nice music, incredible smells, and a nearly overwhelming amount of candles. Thank God only some were scented. Fortunately, she did not look underdressed or overdressed for the occasion, so that burdening worry was off of her shoulders finally. Apparently, without her knowing at all, Feliciano had already called in a reservation much earlier, seeming as if he had planned to be late and had assumed that she'd wait for him long enough. Well, he was right.

The restaurant was named _Vino e Amore_ and the setting of the place really fit the title. All it seemed to consist of was love and wine in ever single corner and room. Autumn was taken from her astonished daze when she felt the other's arm hook around hers, him beginning to lead her after the waiter in front of them who seemed to glance back every two seconds, which got sort of annoying after a while. They finally took their seats at a white clothed table towards the back of the room, preordered red wine being delivered and poured almost immediately, things like this being nothing like Autumn had ever experienced. She was absolutely speechless by the moment they were left alone. The Italian man laughed softly, able to sense the mood for once and getting that she was a little more than surprised.

"Too much?" He asked with a hint of nervousness, now fiddling with his hands in his lap. "I tend to overdo it sometimes."

"No, no, it's wonderful! I just. . I guess I wasn't expecting it, is all," she responded with a small laugh, a moderate blush never leaving her face throughout the entire time.

"Oh, good!" He cheered before reminding himself that they were in a quiet restaurant. "So, we came here to get to know each other. . and to eat, of course. I guess we can just ask questions back and forth and find out things that way~!" He felt accomplished by his ability to make a decision for the both of them, feeling strongly about this date for some reason. "Ladies first."

"Alright. Hm. ." She stared at him as she thought, watching as he took a sip of his wine and wondering how it didn't all fall out of his mouth with him grinning like that at her. It was as if he practiced it every day, which was most certainly a good thing. "How old are you? If you don't mind my asking, that is."

"Not at all. I'm twenty." He said, causing Autumn to choke a little bit on absolutely nothing. He was three years older! Oh well, he certainly didn't look his age nor did he act it. "My turn. How long have you lived in Naples?"

"Eight years. We moved away for my father's job before he and my brother were drafted," she replied, taking a drink of her own alcohol and smiling softly, though it pained her slightly to speak of her father's current position. "Speaking of which, you don't really look seem the type to be in the military. No offense," she began, Feliciano simply shrugging in response, actually finding that to be a bit of a compliment. War wasn't really his favorite thing to be a part of. "But why did you join the war effort?"

"Ah, I didn't really have a choice. I've been in the business for a long time, I guess."

"But you're only twenty. How could-?"

He held up a finger, pouting in a fake way and shaking his head. "Nope! My turn. Do you have any friends you like to hang out with?"

She sighed softly and thought of how to respond, knowing she had plenty of friends, but most of them never saw her anymore. It was truthfully kind of lonely. "We don't talk much anymore. Everything's sort of gone downhill since the war came about. Um. . what do you like to do in your free time?"

"Hm. . well, I love anything art related. I paint and draw a lot, so you could say I'm an artist, I suppose." This caused Autumn to smile widely, glad they found something that they had in common. "And you?"

"Exactly the same! I love art, but I don't think I'm very good."

"Nuh-uh! That can't be true. Bad artist do not exist; only unique and original ones. If all art was supposed to be the same style and always turned out correctly, then. . well, Monet wouldn't have made it very far with his career. Don't you think?"

She laughed quietly, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear and averting her eyes for a split second. "Yeah. What do you draw?" She asked and sprung the conversation onto the main and ever so broad topic of art. They discussed that for a while, through their entree and while waiting for the next course, though when that came, they had switched onto less personal things and more small things such as: favorite colors, favorite animals, desired careers and such. Truthfully, it was incredibly fun for the both of them and time passed so quickly that by the time dessert arrived, they hadn't even noticed that they and only two other couples were left in the restaurant. It was Autumn's turn,

"Okay, another question," she started as Feliciano paid the bill and waited for the waiter to bring their change. "Oh! I've got one! Who was that soldier the other day? The one you were speaking to? It seemed like you two had met before." She could sense an extreme tenseness in the Italian man across from her as the question was asked, like this topic made him almost uncomfortable. His shoulders seemed to tighten up along with the rest of him, though he simply took a deep breath and relaxed himself, leaning back slightly in his chair.

"Lieutenant Ludwig Beilschmidt. He and I have been friends for a long time, but. . this war has changed him. Mainly his leader has. I know he's not really like that, but he has to act that way. It's a power thing that I've never understood and hope not to. I especially don't ever want to hit a girl like he did. I think that in a time like this when the world is so separated, everyone should be protected, no matter who or what they are," he said quietly, the waiter coming in at the end and bringing the change as if on cue. Feliciano instantly placed a smile back on his face once he realized it was gone and rose from his chair, offering a hand down to help Autumn up from her chair. "You and I should both be getting back. I'll walk you home, if that's okay~" he basically hummed, tilting his head slightly to the side and closing his eyes happily.

She couldn't help but wonder how he changed moods so suddenly like they hadn't just been talking about wartime and recent depressing situations. It was as if he did this all the time. There was something incredibly fake about this, however, that she felt as if she were unable to not see through it. Simply pushing the thoughts off, Autumn took his hand and stood, beginning to walk out with him, thanking the nice waiter on the way. When they were outside, it was a bit quieter than before, like they didn't have to say anything to be able to feel comfortable around one another. Neither of them had ever been this way around anyone else and the feelings truly were wonderful. Their walking pace slowed down and synchronized, both seeming to want to have more time together, whether or not it consisted of actual conversing. Unfortunately, Autumn's doorstep was before them all too soon and their movements came to a stop as they turned to face each other, finally releasing each other's hands. "Well. . " she nearly whispered, gazing back into his eyes that seemed to shine even in the darkness.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye. I mean, for now."

"Right." There was a long silence as they stood there, Autumn grasping her own arm that hung at her side and Feliciano rubbing the back of his neck nervously.

"Can I see you again?" He asked quietly, to which she responded with a faint smile.

"Of course."

"Alright, well. ." he started, still smiling almost invisibly, a lot seeming to be on his mind suddenly. "Ciao, then!" As he turned around, he was stopped by Autumn grabbing his arm, pulling him back.

"Oh, and Feli?" She leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his cheek, pulling away after a second to see his face a light shade of pink. "You don't have to fake a smile around me. Good night." With that, she lightly squeezed his hand once before turning towards her door and opening it, stepping inside and leaving Feliciano alone to his thoughts.


End file.
